by Loren Miller

Texas Misconceptions

• We are all wealthy . . . .

Texas Misconceptions

Texas Misconceptions

• We ride horses to school . . . .

• If we don’t ride horses, then we have gun racks on the back of our pickups.

• All the women look like Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders.

• We mangle the language (e.g., George W. Bush). Gaffs

• We are all dumb.

• We’re rude and crude (e.g., Lyndon Johnson).

LBJ

Points to Ponder . . . .

• In 1965, a member of the Texas House submitted a resolution commending Albert DeSalvo for his efforts in population control. No one checked to see who Mr. DeSalvo was. It passed.– The next day, the New York Times informed the world

that the Texas Legislature had just commended the “Boston Strangler.”

• In 1969, a newly elected member of the Texas House was in Austin for new member orientation. That night he went out on 6th street, got drunk and when a bouncer tried to escort him out of the establishment, he pulled a gun and informed the patrons that “I’m a member of the legislature, and you can’t do this to me.”– This also made the New York Times.

Points to Ponder . . . .

• In the early 90’s, a member of the legislature introduced a resolution to create a committee to recommend to the next session of the legislature the “official color of the official state condom.” It passed.

• In the mid 90’s, during a debate on an open container law, a member of the legislature stated that “Bubba, after a hard day’s work at the factory or on the farm, deserves to swig a few on the way home.”

• “If you took all the fools out of the Legislature, it wouldn’t be a representative body anymore.”

Carl Parkerformer State Senator

Points to Ponder . . . .

• In early 1997, Senator Drew Nixon (R-Carthage) was arrested in South Austin with an unlicensed handgun in his automobile after he was taped and filmed bargaining for sex from an undercover policewoman. He pled guilty to a Class B misdemeanor and served a 6-month sentence on weekends while continuing in office.– His election campaign focused on “family values.”

• In 1999, a 20-year-old Brazosport College student working for Senator J.E. Brown (R-Lake Jackson) complained that he had fondled and attempted to kiss her while giving her a golf lesson in his law office. Although Brown publicly gave his former employee a letter of apology, he continued in office.

Bring in the Clowns . . . .

Texas Legislature Over Time

House Senate

The Rise of the Republicans1970-2000

Texas Democrats are more conservative than Democratic.

Democratic presidential candidates have been viewed by many Texans as being “too liberal.”

Bedroom communities of major Texas cities have attracted white collar industries whose workers tend to be Republican.

Blacks and Hispanics, who tend to be Democrats, do not turn

out to vote to the same extent as Anglos.

Impact of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Rise of the Republican South% Republican Seats

The Fall of the Republicans??2020+

The labor force today is 64 percent Anglo and 22 percent Hispanic. By 2030 it will be 45 percent Hispanic and 37 percent Anglo.

The average household income for 2000 was $45,736. In 2030 it will be $42,620.

Mitt Romney’s Stance on Hispanic Issues:

He vowed to veto the DREAM Act which wouldmake non-citizens who serve in the military eligible for citizenship.

He favored a system of self-deportation, a policythat involves making economic conditions so difficult for undocumented workers that they chooseto leave the country. If they want to return, theywould then get in the “back of the line.”

Arizona Immigration Law:Requires that state law enforcement officials attemptto determine an individual’s immigration status during a “lawful stop, detention, or arrest” or during a “lawful contact” not specific to any activity.

Sotomayor Vote

Latino Vote:44% for Bush (2004)31% for McCain (2008)27% for Romney (2012

The Fall of the Republicans??2020+

%

Texas

Problems for the Democrats in TexasLatino Voter Turnout

Bureau of the Census, 2011

The Fall of the Republicans??2020+

2000 2020 2050

Non-Hispanic, White

Black

Hispanic Asian

National Totals

Other

IF THE LEGISLATURE WAS A REPRESENTATIVE BODY

% OF TEXAS POPULATION

% OF 2007 HOUSE MEMBERSHIP

% OF 2007 SENATE MEMBERSHIP

MEN 50 78 87

AFRICAN-AMERICAN

12 9 6

ANGLO 53 70 74

HISPANIC 32 19 19

ASIAN 3 1 0

“The future of Texas is tied to its minority populations. How well they do is how well Texas will do.”

Steve Murdock, demographer, Texas A&M University

Texas Legislature Over Time

House Senate

“Along with bar rooms and bordellos, there has not been a more male-dominated institution . . . than the Texas legislature. These three worlds have a lot in

common, such as liquor, tobacco, money, fist fights, and, of course, politics. They are also arenas of male dominion and social bonding.”

Nancy Baker Jones, historian

Texas Legislature Over Time

House Senate

LIMITED SESSION

140 Day Session

Odd Numbered Years (only 4 states have biennial sessions)

Early January

Early June

LIMITED SESSION

140 Day Session

Odd Numbered Years

Early January

Early June

If a disputed bill passes at all,

when will it pass?

Role of Lobbyists

80% of the votes come in the last two weeks

Voting

If you ask the question, “Whose bill is it?” what you mean is, which lobby wrote it. If you want to know which legislator is sponsoring the bill, you ask, “Who’s carrying the bill?

Shows the influence of Lobbyists

“If you meet only occasionally, get paid little, and have weak staffs, you are at the disposal of the lobby because you have to go to them for information.”

Cal Jillson,political scientist

Who Gives and Who Receives?(millions)

2009

Where Does Texas Rank??

Category Year Rank

Per capita state government expenditure 2010 49

% of insured low income children 2010 50

Average consumer credit score 2010 49

Spending on state arts agencies 2010 43

Affordability of homeowners’ insurance 2011 49

% of population with health insurance 2010 50

# of high school graduates 25 and over 2010 50

Affordability of residential electric bill 2010 50

Where Does Texas Rank??

Category Year Rank

Birth rate 2010 2

Amount of carbon dioxide emissions 2011 1

# of clean water permit violations 2011 1

Amount of hazardous waste generated 2011 1

% of population uninsured 2011 1

# of executions 2011 1

% of low income population covered by Medicaid 2010 49

Per capita spending on mental health 2010 50

Where Does Texas Rank??

Category Year Rank

Sales tax dependence 2011 2

Overall birth rate 2010 2

Teenage birth rate 2010 3

Amount of exposure to ozone pollution 2010 4

# of hazardous chemical spills 2005 2

High school graduation rate 2010 43

Women’s voter turnout 2010 49

% of voting age population that votes 2010 45

Mean SAT test scores 2011 47

TEXAS MAJOR STATE AND LOCAL TAXES AS A PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLD INCOME

Lower Income

Lower Middle

Middle Income

Upper Middle

Upper Income

Sales Tax 5.9% 3.5% 2.8% 2.6% 1.8%

Gas Tax 0.8% 0.5% 0.4% 0.3% 0.2%

Motor Vehicle

Tax0.7% 0.5% 0.5%

0.4% 0.3%

Local Property

Tax4.7% 2.7% 2.3% 2.3% 2.0%

Texas State Comptroller, 2007

Who Would Run??

• Someone who is independently wealthy – Per diem pushes the compensation to

approximately $30,000/yr• Someone who is self-employed• Someone who would benefit from added name

recognition– Such as a lawyer or a realtor

• Someone who wants to use this office as a stepping-stone to another office

• Someone who wants to become a lobbyist

Legislative Salaries in the Ten Most Populous States

State Annual Salary

California $110,886

Texas $7,200

New York $79,500

Florida $29,916

Pennsylvania $69,647

Illinois $57,619

Ohio $56,241

Michigan $79,650

North Carolina $14,951

Georgia $16,524

2010

Legislatures Staffed with Professionals

(full-time, well-staffed, well-paid)

California

Florida

Illinois

Massachusetts

Michigan

New Jersey

New York

Ohio

Pennsylvania

Wisconsin

WHAT’S IT COST TO RUN?

2006

OFFICE INCUMBENT CHALLENGER

HOUSE $267,300 $91,400

SENATE $835,000 $235,200

TURNOVER (1971-2010)

Texas House ranged from 7% to 51%(23% in 2010)

Texas Senate ranged from 3% to 45%(7% in 2010)

Compare to Congress

AVERAGE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

HOUSE 8

SENATE 13

2009

With high turnover the new members are learning the rules and finding their way. The allows the few “old timers” to

control the legislative process.

PRESIDING OFFICERS

• Appoint all committee chairs and vice chairs

• Appoint one-half of the members of all substantive committees

• Appoint all members of conference committees

• Recognize (or not) members who wish to speak on the floor

• Break a tie vote

Speaker Lieutenant Governor

GETTING BILLS TO THE FLOOR

• House Calendars Committee– Controlled by the Speaker– Similar to the Rules Committee in the U.S.

House

GETTING BILLS TO THE FLOOR

• Senate, Suspension of the Rules– Bills require a 2/3’s vote to be considered

on the floor**• “The two-thirds rule protects the conservatives

from wacky liberal bills, and it protects the liberals from wacky conservative bills.”

• “It imposes adult behavior on people who might be otherwise inclined.”

Jeff Wentworth, State Senator R., San Antonio

Kel Seliger, State Senator, R., Amarillo

“For state government to work, three people have to work together, and

they have to work well together—the governor, the lieutenant governor and

the speaker.”

Pete Gallego, state representative, D., Alpine

Power of Lt. Governor

“A speaker who uses the office fully can virtually determine what does and what does not become

law in Texas.”

Ben Barnes, former speaker of the Texas House

“No man’s life, liberty, or property is safe while the legislature is in session.”

Texas proverb

It’s now time for your second exam.

Study hard!